Appendix A
Hertfordshire County Council
Minerals and Waste Development Framework
Waste Development Policies
Preferred Options version
XXXX 2008
County Development Unit
Hertfordshire County Council
Contact: 01992 556227
www.hertsdirect.org
The Technical Appendices, Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)/Sustainability Appraisal (SA) and Appropriate Assessment (AA) screening reports which accompany this Preferred Options paper can be viewed at libraries throughout the county and are available from County Hall on request. In order to reduce the amount of resources used in the preparation of these documents they are available on CD by request or on our website:
www.hertsdirect.org
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction 1
Minerals and Waste Development Framework 2
The Development Control Process 2
Statement of Community Involvement 2
Consultation and Community Involvement 2
Chapter 2 Background to Waste 4
What is Waste? 4
Responsibility for Waste Management 5
Chapter 3 Development Policy Drivers 7 Policy & Regulatory Context 7 Regional Policies 7
National Guidance and National Policy Audit 7
Conformity with the Development Plan and other
Planning Guidance 8
Chapter 4 Preferred Options 9
The Waste Development Policies Document 9
Policy 1 – Transport & Traffic 10
Reasoned Justification for Policy 10
Policy 1a – Rural Roads 12
Policy 2 – Environmental Effects, Protection
& Mitigation 14
Reasoned Justification for Policy 15
Policy 3 – Operational Matters 18
Reasoned Justification for Policy 20
Policy 4 - Landfill & Landraise 21
Reasoned Justification for Policy 21
Policy 5 – Facility Requirements 23
Reasoned Justification for Policy 23
Policy 6 – Enforcement 25
Appendix A Vision and Objectives 26
Appendix B Monitoring and Implementation 28
Appendix C Summary of Hertfordshire’s characteristics 39
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Chapter 1
Introduction
Minerals and Waste Development Framework
1.1 This document is one of a number of local development documents that together will make up the Minerals and Waste Development Framework for Hertfordshire. The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 requires the preparation of such documents in order to deliver the spatial planning strategy for the future of minerals and waste planning in the County.
1.2 The Minerals and Waste Development Framework will comprise a portfolio of local development documents, to which the Development Policies Document is key. The Development Policies Preferred Options document has been prepared in advance of the Waste Site Allocations Document and in conjunction with the Core Strategy.
1.3 The Council may also prepare other Development Plan Documents (DPD) and supplementary planning documents that expand upon ideas set out in DPD or provide new additional information. The Minerals and Waste Framework also includes the Statement of Community Involvement, the Core Strategy, Site Specific Allocations, Proposals Maps, the Minerals and Waste Development Scheme and the Annual Monitoring Report. The spatial element and vision of the plan is contained in the Core Strategy as this document is focused on setting out policies which will be used in determining planning applications.
1.4 The stages of production of the development plan documents are as follows:
· Issues and Options - This document sought opinions on a number of issues and possible options and was the first opportunity for public engagement.
· Preferred Options - This stage sets out the preferred options for dealing with key waste issues
· Submission - The DPD is submitted for independent examination and further public consultation.
· Examination - Once the comments from the public consultation have been analysed, an independent public examination will take place. An inspector is appointed by the Secretary of State to consider the DPD and the test of soundness of the plan.
· Adoption - Following the examination, the inspector's report will set out recommendations for changes to the DPD that will be binding on the County Council. When the Council has integrated the changes, it will adopt the DPD.
1.5 At this stage, the proposed Waste Development Policies DPD has not been confirmed by the Council. This document has been produced in order to consult further with the community and stakeholders on the 'preferred options' before finalising our proposals to be submitted for independent examination. The comments received on the documents will help shape the contents of the submission document.
The Development Control Process
1.6 Development control is the process which regulates the development and use of land. It involves the consideration of planning applications, the monitoring of development as it takes place and enforcement action where breaches of planning permission has occurred. In areas where there are two tiers of local authorities (such as Hertfordshire), all decisions on waste planning applications are decided upon by the County Council. The aim of the County Council is to make the best decision possible for each application. This requires taking into account the overall impact of the development (visual, environmental, other) and weighing it against the interests of the wider community, in such trying to strike a balance between the two.In order to make a decision upon an application, whether waste or otherwise, a variety of information needs to be taken into account. Considerations include the overall scale, aesthetics (materials, design), access to the site, the need for the facility itself,
Statement of Community Involvement
1.7 In accordance with recent legislative changes, a Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) was prepared in November 2006. The SCI outlines the proposed consultation and public communication activities to be undertaken throughout the plan preparation stage and also in implementation stages, including development control.
1.8 The Waste Development Policies Document will be prepared in full compliance with the SCI, and will also recognise Hertfordshire County Council's corporate communications objectives, including:
· Identifying opportunities to improve public involvement in services and decision making
· Supporting communities with members
· Continuing to improve our web communications and access to services online
· Improving the quality and effectiveness of the Council's communications as a whole, particularly in terms of accessibility
Consultation and Community Involvement
1.9 This is the Preferred Options stage of the Plan making process and is the second opportunity for community involvement. A stakeholder workshop day was organised in 2007 as part of this Preferred Options stage of the plan making process. There were two sessions held, one for Industry representatives and one for site liaison groups. It was an opportunity to engage a wide variety of people who have an interest in the Plan to discuss a range of topics. The industry representatives were asked a range of questions on a variety of topics which included New Technologies, Public Relations, Pre-Application Consultations, among others.
1.10 The Council adopted its Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) in November 2006. The SCI is a document which sets out our strategy for involving and consulting the appropriate stakeholders in the preparation of a variety of documents. Paper copies of the SCI are available at libraries across the County, all of the District Councils, and the County Council (also available on www.hertdirect.org).
1.11 The County Council is formally consulting everyone who has a statutory responsibility for waste in Hertfordshire as well as everyone who has expressed an interest in the Waste Development Policies DPD during previous consultations.
1.12 If you feel that the proposed policy principles are not appropriate, or if there are omissions please let us know. This is an important opportunity to influence the Waste Development Policies for Hertfordshire. To achieve sustainable development, communities need to be involved in developing the vision for their area and in its implementation.
Chapter 2
Background to Waste
What is Waste?
2.1 The Environment Agency defines waste as: 'Any substance or object that you discard, intend to discard, or are required to discard...and as such is subject to a number of regulatory requirements'.
The Waste Development Control Policies Document must cover a range of waste streams, generally referred to as one of three types: Municipal, Construction/Demolition and Commercial/Industrial.
· Municipal Waste includes household waste and any other wastes collected by a Waste Collection Authority or Waste Disposal Authority or its agents, including commercial or industrial waste and waste resulting from the clearance of fly-tipped materials and litter.
· Construction/Demolition Waste consists of waste building materials resulting from the construction, remodelling, repair or demolition of buildings, bridges, pavements and other structures. Waste materials can include rubble (e.g. concrete, wood, masonry, metals, and asphalt), packaging, plastics and hazardous materials (e.g. lead, asbestos, mercury, liquid paints and pressure treated lumber).
· Commercial/Industrial Waste is created from premises which are used wholly or mainly for trade, business, sport, recreation or entertainment. Should the premises be owned or controlled by Local Government (or agents) then the waste can be termed municipal waste.
2.2 Other classifications to be considered in the Waste Development Plan include:
· Clinical, difficult and special wastes
· Hazardous waste
· Waste water and sewage sludge
· Liquid waste and dredging
· Nuclear and radioactive waste
· Contaminated land waste, and;
· Landfill
· Agricultural waste
2.3 There are a range of waste management facilities to manage such waste, which include:
· Waste separation and recycling facilities;
· Composting facilities;
· Incinerators (with or without energy recovery);
· Emerging technologies;
· Transfer stations, and;
· Landfill.
Responsibility for Waste Management
2.4 Responsibility for waste management sits with several different organisations. Essentially these are:
Waste Planning Authorities (WPA)
Local Authorities (usually County Councils and Unitary Authorities), are responsible for ensuring an adequate framework in their development plans to enable the waste management industry to establish appropriate facilities for managing amounts of waste over a period of at least 10-years. This should be done through the production of Waste Development Plans. Planning applications will be decided within this framework and development plan for the area as a whole (RSS and LDFS).
Waste Disposal Authorities (WDA)
WDAs are usually County Councils and their responsibilities include the development and implementation of joint municipal waste management strategies with district councils. They are responsible for the safe management of household and some commercial wastes arising in their areas, directed to waste disposal facilities (either to a partly-owned arms-length local authority waste disposal company or directly into the private sector), as specified by the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
Waste Collection Authorities (WCA)
WCAs are responsible for the safe and efficient collection of household and some commercial wastes arising in their areas, and in accordance with approved waste recycling plans. WCAs are usually district councils, who are also responsible for environmental health issues.
Regional Technical Advisory Bodies (RTAB)
RTABs are responsible for assembling relevant data across regions and providing advice on options and strategies for dealing with waste needs.
Regional Assemblies
Regional Assemblies perform core activities but they may also engage in other work according to regional circumstances and priorities. As Regional Planning Bodies, Assemblies are responsible for preparing statutory Regional Spatial Strategies including Regional Transport Strategies. This work involves developing, monitoring and reviewing strategic planning and transport policies. The final decisions rest with the Secretary of State. Assemblies also provide a strategic focus for integrating regional strategy development and partnership working.
Environment Agency
The EA are responsible for the prevention or minimisation of effects of pollution on the environment, for issuing waste management licences and permits (IPPCs) and enforcement of any conditions it imposes. It is also responsible for providing up to date information on waste arisings and extent/need for management and disposal facilities. The EA and WPA undertake complementary roles; planning permission is the responsibility of the WPA and waste management licensing is the responsibility of the EA. These are separate requirements however in considering applications both organisations must consult with each other for comments on proposals prior to determination.
Chapter 3
Development Policies
3.1 Waste management facilities can have varying impacts on both the natural environment and surrounding developed areas. As such policies need to be put in place, which reflect the need to protect these environments and areas from permanent and/or significant adverse effects.
Policy & Regulatory Context
3.2 Planning Policy Statement 10 (PPS10) Planning for Sustainable Waste Management sets out the policy and regulatory context of waste management. All proposals for waste management facilities and related development will be assessed against national and regional planning guidance, the policies of the development plan and any appropriate supplementary planning guidance.
3.3 Waste Development proposals need to be assessed against the overarching requirements of the Development Plan in addition to considering requirements of any other relevant plans such as the Structure Plan 1991-2011, Minerals Local Plan Review 2002-2016 and plans produced by the various local district and borough councils.
Regional Policies
3.4 The East of England RSS states that waste management policies should be based on objectives including the provision of adequate waste facilities which also minimise environmental impact whilst gathering community support; set challenging but achievable waste management targets including the elimination of landfilling of untreated municipal and commercial waste in the region by 2021; progressively reduce imported waste whilst taking responsibility for waste arising in Hertfordshire, including managing apportioned and hazardous waste; and designing and constructing waste management facilities which minimise the creation of waste whilst maximising and facilitating waste recycling.
National Guidance and National Policy Audit
3.5 National guidance is taken into account when considering any proposal for a waste management facility. A list of key policies pertaining specifically to waste management used can be found in Appendix A. As part of the preparation for the Development Policies document a national policy audit was carried out. Current Government guidance states that policies in Local Development Frameworks including Minerals and Waste Development Frameworks should avoid repeating national policy. As part of a process to update the planning system and to ensure that national policy is clear, the Government have been gradually replacing Planning Policy Guidance (PPGs) with Planning Policy Statements (PPPs). In addition to this process it is a requirement that any policies included in the Waste Development Framework should be soundly based on local evidence to support their inclusion; this is to ensure that emerging policies are locally specific.